Ducks And Other Demons
by GideonGraystairs
Summary: Jem blinked, raising his hands up like he wasn't sure whether he should shield himself, pin his friend down, or try to help him with whatever the hell he was doing.


**I'm in the process of filling out the requests received for a ship + line of dialogue style prompting I did on Tumblr and figured I may as well post them over here, too. They're all short and will probably never be added to, nor edited. Enjoy *insert heart***

 **This one was requested by kawaiilonewolf. Line of dialogue - "Get it off, GET IT OFF!"**

* * *

The sun shone high above their heads, reflecting off the nearby pond in iridescent hues of magnificence. Will could hear the birds chirping from their nests wedged among the scattering of trees, loud songs of beauty and fresh days that he really, _really_ was not feeling at that moment in time.

He growled, kicking another stone off the cobbled path through the park as they walked. Jem watched the action in quiet bemusement, folding his hands behind his back and ducking his head to hide a smile.

"They're such assholes," the darker-haired of the two whined. "Stupid Lightworms. Who let them into the Institute, anyway?"

"That," Jem commented neutrally, "would be the Clave. They are here on actual business, you know."

"Yeah, right," Will snapped back harshly, kicking at another stone. "Benedick is probably just trying to find fault with Charlotte's management skills yet again."

"You know that's not his name, William."

Will's scowl darkened, hands shoving further into the pockets of his slacks as they rounded a curve in the path. He muttered something under his breath, most likely full of colourful language Jem should be thankful not to have heard, and proceeded to grumble on despite his companion's inability to understand what he was saying. Said companion merely sighed, used to his _parabatai_ 's antiques, and cast his gaze ahead to the nearing pond.

It was beautiful, really, with the lotuses in full-bloom and the cattails swaying in the gentle breeze. If Jem closed his eyes, he could almost picture himself back in Hong Kong at nine years old, swinging under the sakura trees with his mother. Almost, though glancing over at the still bumbling fool beside him, he thought maybe this was just as good.

Or, it was, until Will suddenly let out a vicious shriek and jerked back with flailing limbs. "Get it off!" he screamed, jumping around and nearly smacking Jem in the face as he attempted to remove whatever was causing him such distress. "Get it off, get it off, get it **off**!"

Jem blinked, raising his hands up like he wasn't sure whether he should shield himself, pin his friend down, or try to help him with whatever the hell he was doing. It wasn't until he noticed the flapping grey thing freaking out right along with the idiot that he realized what was going on.

A duck. There was a duck. Most likely, it had hobbled over out of curiosity and moved to inspect Will's shoes, as they were covered in swamp mud from their adventures earlier that day. And well, Will had never been known for having a level head when it came to the swamp-dwelling creatures.

He couldn't help it- he laughed, a bright sound that filled the air around them in surprise. He ended up nearly doubled over with the force of his laughter, wiping the tears from his eyes at the ridiculous sight they made. It wasn't until he'd started winding back down that Will finally stopped flailing and straightened his jacket, shooting the now fleeing animal a vicious look.

"Serves you right!" he called out after it before finally turning back to his argentous friend. He scowled at him, too, crossing his arms over his chest in a display of self-righteousness. "Stop laughing, it's not funny."

"It's a little funny," Jem replied, still chuckling. Will's scowl only darkened, lips twisting so much they nearly turned white. "Oh, come on," Jem tried, reaching over to pat him on the arm reassuringly. "It's not that bad. Besides, you should be used to it by now. It _does_ happen every time."

"Shut up!" Will snapped, punching him half-heartedly in the shoulder. Their eyes met as he did, Jem's laughter dying on his lips, and something strange passed between them that neither knew how to name. Will swallowed, dry and harsh where it stuck in his throat, and Jem sucked in a deep breath to stop the unwarranted fluttering of his heart.

"We should, uh," the blue-eyed boy began, clearing his throat again. "We should head back to the Institute."

Jem swallowed, taking another deep breath, and tried not to miss the feeling as it left. "Yeah," he agreed. "I guess we should."

Maybe, though, neither of them really wanted to leave this moment at all.

* * *

 **Did I mention the 146 Things To Do Besides Self-Harm collection I started on tumblr? Go check it out at /tagged/146things on either my main blog (gideongraystairs) or my writing blog (taitewrites). Love you all *insert another heart***


End file.
